A. SRIDHAR AND ORS. Vs. THE II APPELLATE AUTHORITY AND DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF LABOUR (TWIN CITIES) AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Issue for consideration in these writ petitions is, whether the second appellate authority under the Andhra Pradesh Shops and Establishments Act, 1988 (for short, Act) is vested with power to condone delay in filing second appeals, entertain the second appeals filed after 30 days from the date of receipt of copies of the orders of first appellate authority by the bank and consider those second appeals on merits? As the core issue is common, all writ petitions are disposed of by this common order.

(2.) For convenience, the employees are referred to as petitioners and the Vasavi Co-operative Bank is referred to as respondent Bank.

(3.) This litigation has checkered history. The employees of the Vasavi Cooperative Bank are the victims of mismanagement of the affairs of their employer, the Vasavi Cooperative Bank (the Bank) by the persons in the helm of affairs of the Bank. Their services were terminated on the ground that the Bank sustained heavy losses and cannot afford to have large workforce, reduced to skeleton staff, later went into liquidation. They have mounted challenge against their termination, bravely fighting against machinations and arm twisting tactics of the persons responsible to the affairs of the Bank.